how can i write of love and loneliness, the stars, moon and expansive skies, while snipers shoot small children? how? how can? how can i? how can i write? how can i write when babies starve? forgive me for scrolling past for my silence my ignorance my small griefs. how can i write about my … Continue reading How Can I?
Tag: poem
O Beirut & Vanessa
O Beirut, Aug 2020 Beirut port explosion, Aug 2020 for her hips sway and fingers say what lips may from ‘75 to twenty-O-six, for whom explosions have shattered the most stubborn slivers of hope for her hips sway and fingers say what lips may fast forward to 2020 - now she crawls in the shards … Continue reading O Beirut & Vanessa
Tick Tock, I Stare
Wire cars, hair a mess; I rush my steps— now breathless. Tick tock, I stare; dark rings deepen my hollow glare, Mr. mischief shades in haste, lines into my face. Times of Zambia, plastic Shoprite bags crushed, tied string— blue and pink, plastic sacks of mealie meal, crumpled globes, they roll to fame from Z … Continue reading Tick Tock, I Stare
Our Moon
Poem: Our Moon (the video). written & recited by Natasha Devalia Music: Cascading Sakuras composed & played by Leila Kassar Footage: Nok Chuanpit, Santosh Perla Video Artist: Nok Chuanpit
Unseen Veins – Runner Up!
I’m honoured my pamphlet ‘Unseen Veins’ was chosen as 2nd runner up in the 2022 Aryamati poetry prize for pamphlets on the theme of social change and peace. Thank you for the recognition, Fly on the Wall Press. [About 'Unseen Veins': In this poetry pamphlet, the complexities of how we label ourselves and where we … Continue reading Unseen Veins – Runner Up!
Unseen Veins – Short list – Aryamati Competition for Poetry
“A publisher with a conscience.” That’s the tagline that Fly on the Wall Press, a small, independent publisher out of Manchester goes by. I’ve enjoyed multiple poetry pamphlets they’ve published including “Warriors” by Sundra Lawrence, “History of Forgetfulness” by Shahe Mankerian, and “Aftereffects” by Jiye Lee. After the summer holidays I was reminded of the … Continue reading Unseen Veins – Short list – Aryamati Competition for Poetry
My Two Brothers
One left home, traveled across the seas to study, then to study further. He found a job in a city. There, he met his love. They held hands and moved across the seas, to a third and neutral place, together. Both landed as strangers in a new world; their separate pasts and ideas packed into … Continue reading My Two Brothers
O Beirut
for her hips sway and fingers say what lips may from ‘75 to twenty-O-five for whom explosions have shattered the most stubborn slivers of hope fast forward to 2020 - now she crawls in the shards soaked in her own piss and blood The port of Beirut on 4/8/2020, (image from the Bangkok Post)
Crown of Moons
A crown of moons appear in dreams, the five of them merged as one. Around a table they sit, they speak of being, doing, of light and dark. “....all are equal in madness and in dreams,” they say. I hear: mwenye, hindiye, lao wai, gweilo, farang. Stand tall, ground your feet, my children kneel, defy … Continue reading Crown of Moons
You —
are the sweet, thick, honey that flows through me from the top of my head, between my breasts, into my hips, down to my toes. You — are the pure nectar that thrills me to bloom, for You — leave a trail; petals of affection and admiration behind my every step You — are my … Continue reading You —
Natasha Devalia 